Loki Dokie
by dragonmactir
Summary: After the events of Avengers: Infinity War, Loki returns... and chaos ensues.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Marvel Comics trademarks or any of its related characters. This is just for my own enjoyment and the potential enjoyment of other comic junkies like me, and no monetary gain was expected or received.

 **Rating:** T+

 **Spoilers:** This takes place after Infinity Wars, but who knows who is really dead and who isn't.

 **Chapter One: Trouble With a Capital L**

Thor looked at the unassuming Bleeker Street townhouse with its iconic upper story window and sighed. He really had no desire to return to Midgard and its troubles, but when the Doctor called them together he was specific in calling out to the god of thunder in particular, and Thor answered that call almost by force of habit. Whatever the wizard had to say, it was probably world-shatteringly bad news. Thor would be in it up to his remaining eye soon.

The others were gathering now, what few were left. Tony Stark, neat and tidy in a business suit instead of his armor, though the briefcase he carried was probably the type that turned into a full suit. Bruce Banner. Clint Barton. Wanda Maximoff. Rocket Raccoon, bereft of any home save for the Avengers now. A footsore and bedraggled bunch, these days, all of them, really, even the ones that were good at pretending otherwise. The whole world had been run through the wringer. No one was left unscarred.

The front door opened for them and they filed inside. Instead of letting them through to the parlor where the drinks were served, the Doctor met them right in the front hall. "Big trouble," he said without preamble.

"We gathered as much, from your summons. What's up?" Tony said.

"I have detected a growing atmospheric disturbance near Rochester. Magical in nature - _severely_ magical in nature. God-level, basically. I don't know who or what is causing it or for what purpose, but it is definitely something that needs to be looked into. It's my jurisdiction, at this point, but I could really use the backup."

The dispirited Avengers shared looks amongst themselves. In the wake of their ordeal with Thanos, none of them wanted to deal with anything like this. "All right, we're with you," Tony said.

"Hold on to your gluteus maxima," the Doctor said, and closed his eyes and made a gesture. In a flash, everyone was standing in a frozen field somewhere in upstate New York. Black birds flew overhead in perfect concentric circles.

"Freaky," Clint Barton said, taking a step back. "Yeah, uh, I'm not waiting around to get power-shit on, guys."

"Those are crows. And ravens," Thor said, watching the birds with great interest.

"Yes, yes they are," the Doctor said. "This is significant?"

Thor looked down and quickly shook his head. "No. No, not really. Maybe. No."

In the distance, the ground seemed to be rushing toward them. Cats of all shapes and sizes were running towards the center of the circle transcribed from the air by the birds. The black cats formed a circle in the center. Thor began to get very excited. He took hold of Banner by the shoulders and shook him. "By father! I don't believe it! I think it's really happening!" he cried.

"What is?" Bruce said, trying to free himself from the Asgardian's tight grip.

"I don't want to say yet. I don't want to jinx it!"

" _Yaaaaaiiieeee!"_ Tony shrieked, and leaped into the air as thousands of snakes crawled out of the ground below them.

"Yes! Yes!" Thor shouted, throwing his arms out wide. "Yes! I hardly dared hope this day would come!"

"How are there snakes surviving out in the open in early January in upstate New York?" Wanda asked, watching as the snakes coiled their bodies together into rings around the cat circles. "And the politicians claim global warming is a myth."

"Everyone, step back," the Doctor said. "Whatever is going to happen is going to happen very soon. We don't want to be in the middle of that circle when it does."

Tony put on his armor. Banner prepared his mental state for a possible imminent Hulk-Out. Thor grinned like a maniac and stood with his arms thrown out wide in a gesture of welcome. A dark green cloud gathered above the birds, and a bolt of emerald lightning shot to earth directly in the center of the circle of black cats below. It diffused into the form of a massive coiled snake, a green anaconda thirty feet long or more, sitting with its head raised like a cobra in a way that normal anacondas simply couldn't do because of their bulk. It swayed back and forth in a hypnotic motion, then…

…the great jaws opened wide, unhinged, and the beast began to gag, choking, dry heaving, until something large and covered in goo was regurgitated inch by gastrointestinal inch. Long, dark hair. Lanky, naked body. Seemingly human, but how many humans were birthed by celestial snake vomit?

" _Loki!"_ Thor shouted, and ran to greet his unconscious brother. He grabbed him up, heedless of the goo, and hugged him tight against his shoulder, pounding him furiously on the back. "I knew I'd see you again, brother!"

"Did… anybody else notice anything a little… _'off'_ … about Loki?" Rocket asked, looking around for confirmation.

"Do you mean the fact that he's a woman?" Tony said. "Yeah, I saw that."

"Well, he was always a little _fem,"_ Wanda said.

"Do you think… _Thor_ … knows? Should we tell him?" Rocket said.

"I think he'll figure it out," the Doctor said. "Let's just… get some clothes on her, shall we?" He made a gesture and a portal appeared. He stepped through it and returned in a moment carrying one of his long tunics. "This should do for now."

"Thor," he said, tapping the Asgardian on the shoulder. "Thor, your… your _sister_ needs her dignity."

"My _brother,"_ Thor said, but he took the garment. He fitted it over the still lifeless Loki's head and down onto her shoulders. "Why do you insist on calling him a woman?"

"Well, that is a female body…" the Doctor said.

"Loki is a shape shifter."

"I don't think she is in any condition to use even the most natural of her powers at the current time, Thor."

"Well, why do _you_ insist on foisting a gender stereotype on him?" Thor cried out. "If _he_ has a female body now, that's immaterial. _He's_ still Loki, God of Mischief. _He_ hasn't changed. You're redefining him based on a set of inconsequential bodily organs."

"That's true. I'm sorry."

"Loki. Loki, my brother. Wake up, now. Come on, now, that's a boy," Thor coaxed, shaking the limp woman in his arms.

Green eyes fluttered open. "Bleagh. Damn it all… you couldn't have picked a _more_ disgusting way of bringing me back? I couldn't have been shat out of a raven's rectum? Not… not that I'm not grateful. Death is… no way to pass the time."

"Loki, you ass! Do you know how much grief you caused me?" Thor said. He hugged the woman tightly again. "With father and Heimdall… well, with things being the way they are, I didn't know if you would ever return."

"You didn't think I'd let myself die not knowing I was coming back, did you?" Loki said, gingerly pushing Thor away. "Do you really think a dagger is the best trick I've got up my sleeve for defeating a mighty fuck like Thanos?"

"Then why did you throw a dagger at Thanos?" Tony said.

"Someone had to die," Loki said. She had the same voice - the same _face,_ softened moderately by femininity. "If it wasn't me, it would have been one of the rest of you. _You_ wouldn't have come back."

"So you did… something _altruistic?"_ Rocket said.

Loki sighed and stood upright, trying to sluice the worst of the snake goo off of herself. "So I had a moment of good-heartedness. Sue me."

"How do you feel?" the Doctor asked.

"Like I've been hit by a Hulk," Loki said, sneering. "I'll _live,_ however." He paused and did a wriggling movement with his hips. "I also feel like I may be missing something."

"You're, um… _hmph_ … female," the Doctor said. "At least, physically."

Loki's emerald eyes grew huge and he looked down at himself. "Well, at least tell me I'm a _shapely_ female. I can't tell a thing in this baggy excuse for a garment."

"I'm… sure you're _lovely,_ Loki," the Doctor said.

Her face twisted up in a grimace. "Hmph. Finally, father will be _'okay'_ with my preference for men."

"I knew it. You owe me twenty bucks, Clint," Wanda said.

"I thought he was into _horses,_ honestly," Clint said, breaking out his wallet. "Didn't he, like, give _birth_ to one, or something? God, this god-shit is so messed up."

"I'm tempted to throw sand in father's face and become a lesbian," Loki said. "That might be fun."

"I don't think that's something you can choose," the Doctor said slowly.

"I'm a god. I can choose," Loki said, with a haughty hair toss. "I am Loki. I can _choose_ to turn myself into a _male_ again, if I want."

"Then… why don't you?" Thor said.

"Because I am weary, brother. Being reborn from the land of death is a painful experience I wouldn't expect you to understand. And besides, this female thing sounds like it could get me into a lot of trouble. I like the sound of that," and his lips turned up in a sly grin.

* * *

"I have a surprise for you," was the first thing that Loki said when they reached Stark Tower and she was properly dressed at last. "I… prepared a little something, a new invention, you might say… before my untimely death. I think it would be of use to us now. However, I left it at my home in Asgard, and I am not strong enough to make the transition there now. Brother, can you take us?"

"Of course," Thor said. He raised Stormbringer and the Asgardian runes surrounded them, creating an instant portal to the plane of the gods. The entire group found themselves standing on the plaza outside Loki's stately residence.

"All right, right inside, down the cellar where I keep my favorite toys," she said, striding forward through the door with great purpose. "Remember folks, don't touch _anything."_

She led them down to a table on which lay a replica of herself as she had been, a mannequin of exceedingly high quality.

"What is that all about?" Rocket asked, pointing to the manufactured Loki.

"Ah, pay no attention to that," real Loki said. "That was a backup plan, in case things didn't go the way I thought they would. Father can do great things, but he _is_ dead, after all."

"So father did bring you back?" Thor said. "I wondered if perhaps it was Hela. Or the Guildmaster."

"I was… planning on going back in time…" Tony mumbled.

"How would a doll of yourself have helped in any conceivable way?" Wanda asked.

"With this," Loki said, and gestured at the shining green chip held up by a pair of clips nearby. "I left a note for Thor, telling him to give this to the false me."

"And this is?" Bruce said, reaching out for the glowing object with one finger.

" _Don't touch it!_ By Odin, man, that's childrearing 101! It's my own creation. I call it a Soul Chip. It's a combination of advanced sorcery and Asgardian technology. You may think us backwards, but we have our advancements, mortals. It contains a small sliver of my soul."

"So it's like an Infinity Stone," Tony said. "How does that help?"

"It's _not_ like an Infinity Stone. An Infinity Stone traps the entire soul and uses it to power the magic of the stone. The Soul Chip takes a small piece of the soul and stores it. Just stores it. Like a data chip from one of your computers. Then, if you have the proper retrieval system, you can access that data at any time."

"So you're saying that the OS is in the doll, and if Thor put the chip in, it would be essentially like you coming back to life," Bruce said. "Minus, maybe, a few memories."

"Precisely. I would even have my powers, and could turn the mannequin into living flesh."

"Handy. But you're back, alive and… well, pretty much well. So it's kind of useless now, right?" Tony said.

"Not so. Observe," Loki said, and clapped her hands once. A large door slid open, revealing a number of similar mannequins standing in a neat row. Steve Rogers. Bucky Barnes. Groot. Gamora. Peter Parker. Nick Fury. The remaining few stood and stared at these replicas for a long moment in silence, then turned as one to look at Loki.

"You can bring them back?" Tony said, croaking from his dry throat.

"I have their Soul Chips right here," she said, opening a drawer in the table. "What I can't do at the moment is make them flesh. I need time to recuperate from my own ordeal. I think I could perhaps bring back _one_ to full living existence."

"But wait - they'll be alive - _and_ dead or trapped in the Infinity Stones - at the same time, won't they? Wouldn't that be traumatic?" Bruce said.

Loki grinned. "There's a unique thing about the soul of any man, god or mortal alike. They don't like to be split. It's still a _theory,_ mind, but the soul sliver in its containment casing should be strong enough to draw the rest of the soul from the realm of death _or_ the Infinity Stones, wherever they happen to be. Thanos will presumably be left with nothing."

"You don't know if it will work or where Thanos is?" the Doctor said.

"My ability to see the future was interrupted by my death. I expect I'll get it back when I'm stronger. Now. Whom do I bring back?"

"Cap," Tony said. "No, wait - Spidey."

"Groot!" Rocket said.

"Maybe you should just wait until you can do them all at once?" Wanda said. "It's too hard to pick just one."

"Well, this is new technology. I don't honestly _know_ that it will work. One of them has to be a test run for the others," Loki said. "It would have been me, had I not been brought back by Father. And if I cannot turn them back to flesh, finding themselves in a false body might prove traumatic indeed."

"I thought you said you could do that," Rocket said. "Don't go backfilling on us now!"

"I could, previously, do that. But now I have no idea what my powers are. I feel very different. Much of it, I'm certain, is the result of fatigue. I will feel better once I have rested. But for now, who will it be?"

"Make it Cap," Tony said again. "He'd be the first to volunteer for anything… dangerous."

"Loki," Thor said quietly. "Why not… Father? Or Mother? Or Heimdall? Any of them could help you bring the others back. But you don't even have them here."

Loki looked at her feet. "I never foresaw Father and Mother dying, Brother. As to Heimdall… well, I don't have the power to bring him back just now. An Asgardian requires considerably more power than a mere mortal. As it is, bringing Captain America back to full strength and vitality is going to be difficult."

The Doctor stepped forward. "I might be able to help you," he said. Loki eyed him warily.

"You may at that. If you can make a conduit of yourself that I may draw power from you, that would be quite helpful," she said. The Doctor cast a glyph and his eyes began to glow with blue light. He placed his hands on Loki's shoulders.

"I'm with you," he said.

"Very well," she said. She took a blue Soul Chip out of the drawer and placed it into a slot behind the Steve Rogers mannequin's left ear. "Here goes the proverbial nothing."

There was a moment of tense stillness, and then the mannequin's eyes fluttered. The mouth moved. "I'm… this is not… my body. I'm not real," Steve said. His eyes focused on Loki and his expression hardened. _"You._ Trickster. What have you done to me?"

"Easy. Rest easy. All will be well in a matter of… moments," Loki said, and held out her hands. Her eyes glowed brilliant gold, and a powerful wave of energy pulsed through her, drawing some energy off of the Doctor as well. She collapsed. The Doctor tried to catch her but found her much heavier than he expected, and she bore them both to the ground.

"Unconscious," he said, checking her. "I think she'll be all right, though."

"How about you, Steve?" Tony said, taking a hesitant step forward. "How are you feeling?"

"What the hell just happened to me?" Steve said. "One minute I thought I was made of some kind of… metal. Now I'm fine. What the _hell?"_

"It's… a long story," Tony said with a sigh. "How's your memory?"

"I remember being introduced to Loki… well, _reintroduced,_ I guess. Then there was a little sting, and now… where the hell are we?"

"Loki's house. Steve… he saved your life."

"Loki did. The guy who destroyed most of New York."

"Yeah, that guy."

"How?"

"Not really sure how he did it, but apparently… he cut a little piece off of your soul… and saved it to a device he created… so that after you died… he could bring you back to life," Bruce said.

"So he knew I was going to die? And he couldn't just tell me so I could watch out for it?" Steve said.

"Some timelines can't be broken," the Doctor said quietly, "but Loki does like to find the loopholes in every law, even the laws of time, physics, and nature."

"Well, I'm going to put this wet whelp to bed so he can rest," Thor said without any great concern. He hoisted his brother up and tossed him over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes. "He has a lot of work to do when he wakes, if he's going to bring Tree and Fury and the others back." He offered the Doctor a hand up.

"Why is she so heavy?" the Doctor asked.

"Never really thought about it, but probably because he's a frost giant," Thor said. "They're not that tall, for giants, but… they're really… _dense."_ He hefted the body on his shoulder. "He hasn't seemed to have lost much weight as a female."

Thor tripped lightly up the stairs, whistling, happy. The others followed more sedately, pondering. The idea of having their comrades back was a pleasant one, but the concept that Loki had such ability was daunting. Was he really so powerful? The god of mischief and trickery and deceit? How could you trust such a being with so much power?

Thor met them back in the living area when he'd divested himself of his brother. He clapped his hands together. "Who's for a tall, frosty ale to celebrate?" he said. No one responded. "Come on, now, why the long faces? This is a grand occasion! So much that went wrong shall be undone! Don't be upset because it isn't done _yet!"_

"That's not what we're worried about, Thor," the Doctor said quietly. "Did you ever know Loki's powers were so… amazing?"

"Well, he's always been good with magic."

"He has created something that may rival the Infinity Stones in terms of power," Tony said. "He did that himself. Without anyone knowing. Even… your father, perhaps? Maybe even Heimdall?"

"Oh, I doubt that. Father would have known, one way or the other. Heimdall would have told him, if nothing else. You couldn't hide anything from those two."

"Your brother hid plenty from them in the past."

"No, actually, he never did. They saw it all coming. They just let it play out," Thor said. "I'm sure they know everything that's going on now. Father brought Loki back - _even though Father is dead himself._ I didn't know even _Father_ would be able to do that. Of course, he did it a little differently than normal…"

"I think he brought some of Loki's own power into bear," the Doctor said. "It felt like Loki's power signature, at any rate, as best as I know it. Which, granted, isn't very well yet."

"That did look like a bolt of my brother's magic, just before the snake formed," Thor said. "You may be right."

"You understand why we're concerned, don't you, Thor?" Steve said.

"Not exactly," Thor said. "But then, I seldom do."

"Bringing people back from the dead is serious power," the Doctor said. "Your father could do it, and Heimdall could do it… but we didn't know your brother could do it."

"I didn't know he could, either. He couldn't, until he invented those little chip-thingies," Thor said. "You heard him, _he_ didn't even know for certain he could do it until it was done."

"But he did it," Steve said. "I appear to be the proof of it."

"Then he turned a manufactured body into a human one," the Doctor said. _"I_ couldn't do that."

"Perhaps you _could,"_ Thor said airily, "if you'd been studying magic for a thousand years like my brother."

"Touché," the Doctor said.

"It's just that… your brother hasn't always been… all that… trustworthy," Bruce said. "If he's more powerful than we knew, he's more _worrisome_ than we thought."

"Don't worry about my brother. He's my _brother._ I'll keep him in line," Thor said. "You know, my brother may be the one that came back as a woman, but you've all turned into a bunch of big _girls,_ haven't you?"

"Hey!" Wanda said.

"The last time your brother got out of line, we lost half of New York City," Tony said, pointing his finger at Thor.

"Oh here we go, playing the blame game," Thor said. _"Thanos_ made Loki do that, and now that I know about it, it _won't_ happen again."

"Can you really stop it?" Bruce said.

"Damn straight," Thor said in a dangerous tone, giving Stormbringer a short toss. "Thanos isn't coming near my brother again."

"I hope you're right," the Doctor said. "For all our sakes. Because if this scheme of your brother's works, and the Infinity Stones are sucked dry, he's surely coming back looking for blood. He'll probably be able to guess who pulled a fast one on him."

"You pulled a bit of a fast one yourself, Doctor," Thor said.

"Yes, but I'm counting on him not having figured that out, yet."

* * *

Loki awoke two Midgardian days later, still weary. Nevertheless, she insisted on continuing with the process of bringing the Avengers and Guardians back to life. The Doctor tried to tell her that doing while exhausted was not good even for a god's constitution.

"Nonsense, I'm fine, just sleep-droopy," she said. "The way you get when you've slept so heavy you feel like you need to take a nap when you wake up. I can feel my powers and they are strong. Besides, now that we know it works, I have something further to show you all."

She led them back down to her cellar laboratory. Another door, and another, revealed more mannequins. Replicas of _all_ the lost Guardians and Avengers, and…

"You've got all of us here," Bruce said, staring his own replica in the face. "You didn't know which of us was going to die."

"No. As I said, my precognizance ended at my death. I did not know in advance who would pass after me," Loki said. "I made one of each of us, just to be sure."

"Heimdall," Thor said, looking into the replica's face. "You made a doll of Heimdall."

"I did. I don't know for sure I have the power to bring him back fully, though. I… made one of you, too, brother… just in case… but I really didn't think it would be necessary. And I kind of thought if it _was_ necessary, then it would all be moot, anyway," Loki said, looking anywhere but at Thor. "I've got Sif here, too. I think I should have enough power for her."

"Heimdall would be able to help you bring back everyone else," the Doctor said. "Wouldn't he?"

"Almost undoubtedly, assuming, again, that I can bring him back to full power," Loki said. _"That_ is daunting."

"You should probably try," Steve said, though he didn't look at all happy about the idea.

"Well, there is one person I think I should bring back first," Loki said. "Then I could perhaps have double the assistance in bringing back Heimdall."

"Who's that?" Tony said, one eyebrow arched quizzically.

Loki looked at the Doctor. "It's time you gave your compatriot back full command of his own body, don't you think?"

"That would be wonderful," the Doctor said. "You have me somewhere?"

"Right over here," Loki said, and opened a single compartment in the wall. A mannequin resembling Stephen Strange stood at parade rest, eyes closed.

"How do I get in there?" the Doctor asked.

"Well, hypothetically…" Loki said, and took a red-hued soul chip out of the table drawer. She put it into the slot behind the mannequin's left ear and the replica awoke. She cast her powers over it and it became flesh.

"Well, great," the Doctor and the replica said. "Now I'm living in stereo. This doesn't really seem to help Wong any."

"Hold your Sleipnir," Loki said. "It may take a moment or two, but it should happen."

A stillness, and then the Doctor began to glow. A pale blue mist formed around him, coalesced, and headed straight for the replica. It was absorbed in a heartbeat.

"Never again, Strange. You make _other_ arrangements, next time you die," Wong said.

"I'm sorry, Wong. Thank you for putting up with me," Strange said contritely.

"If any of your soul is trapped on the Soul Plane, it should draw back to you eventually, probably more rapidly once you've returned to Midgard. Asgard doesn't have the same connection to the Soul Plane that Midgard does," Loki said. "Now… if you and Wong might assist me, I will attempt to bring Heimdall back."

"Don't you think you should take a breather first?" Strange said.

"Enough of this. I am fine, mortal wizard," Loki snapped. She took an orange Soul Chip from the table drawer and put it in the big Asgardian's ear slot. She drew a deep breath. "Odin preserve me."

"Loki," Heimdall said, opening his eyes. "I saw that you would do this. It is not the wisest decision you have ever made."

"I had to do something," Loki said. "In my place, what would you have done?"

Heimdall smiled. "Probably the same. But disconnect me. Do not bring me to full life. It will only hurt you. I would not see that."

"I'm sorry. I must try."

Heimdall's face fell into sorrow. "I warned you."

Loki drew back, gathered all her power in a great golden shimmer around her. Wong and Strange both provided backup sources for her to draw from. She released the spell, and Heimdall stood as a true Asgardian again, but Loki fell to her knees, washed out and shaking. Strange dropped to her side.

"Loki, you're blue in the face," he said.

"I'm a frost giant," she said. "Blue is my natural coloration."

Heimdall knelt down before her. "I did warn you," he said, and offered her a hand. He placed the other on her sweat-slick brow. "You are feverish, Mischievous One. You must rest."

"I'm _fine,"_ she insisted.

"You are _stubborn,"_ Heimdall said. "You always were. If you attempt to bring back any more of your friends, you will kill yourself, and I promise you, your father will not send you back to the world of the living again. Rest. I will do this work for you now. You have done enough. You have done well, Trickster."

"Do you think so?" Loki said, looking up at him.

Heimdall smiled. "Frigga and Odin smile this day. They are proud of their fine son Loki."

A smile tugged at the corners of Loki's mouth. "I will leave you to it, then, I suppose. Ah… don't get the souls mixed-up. Although… that would be _hilarious._ Nick Fury saying _'I am Groot!'"_ She took herself off up the stairs, laughing like a psychopath.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Marvel Comics trademarks or any of its related characters. This is just for my own enjoyment and the potential enjoyment of other comic junkies like me, and no monetary gain was expected or received.

 **Rating:** T+

 **Chapter Two: Trickery**

"Can we go home, now?" Peter Parker said. "I kind of want to see Aunt May. She kind of needs to know I'm alive."

"Not until I know my brother is well," Thor said.

"I could send them home," Heimdall said.

"I think Loki has more to show us," Thor said.

"I know he does," Heimdall said.

"Then why did you offer?" Thor asked.

"Because they could always come back when your brother is well."

"Oh. That's true."

"We won't be able to keep him at rest, however. We never could," Heimdall said. "He will awaken shortly."

"I have a question, Heimdall, that probably only you can answer," Bruce said, "short of Loki himself, who may be a bit confused right now, actually. Scientifically speaking, is he still a he, or is he a she? I mean, I know it's a female body, but does he still have a man's mind?"

"Is there a difference between a man's mind and a woman's mind?" Natasha Romanoff said, in a dangerous voice.

"In a technical sense, yes, a little bit," Bruce said, shifting his stance uncomfortably. "This doesn't make women any less intelligent or capable than men, it just means their brains operate in a slightly different manner."

"He was always a bit of a girl," Thor said. "I doubt he's changed, really."

"There have been alterations," Heimdall said. "What this means to his personality… remains to be seen."

" _You_ don't know?" Thor said, looking at his fellow Asgardian in surprise.

"I do not see every minor detail, Thor Odinson," Heimdall said. "That would drive me quite mad."

There was a loud, metallic clang from the floor above, and Loki's voice cried out, _"Son of a three-headed goat!"_

"Your brother is awake," Sif said, looking at Thor.

"That much is obvious. What is less so, is should he be?" Thor said.

"Probably not," Sif said, and turned to look at the stairwell.

Loki reeled down the curved staircase, staggering and almost tripping over her cloak. "Brother. Go back to bed," Thor said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I'm fine!" Loki said.

"You're still blue in the face," Thor said.

"I make blue look good," Loki said, with an attempt at her old saucy grin. "Besides, I don't need my powers for what I have to show you now. Let's have done with it so I can get you all out of my house."

They filed back down to the cellar. Loki gave her cloak a swirl as she raised her hands above her head. "May I have your attention please!" she demanded.

"Loki… you _have_ our attention…" Thor said.

"Good, because you have no idea how much I need to _feel_ it," she said, smiling a wry smile. She turned back to the table and pulled open a different drawer. In this were small mechanical devices that looked like electronic docks for computers, each with four ports. She took one out and held it up.

"This, my friends, is the greatest sorcero-technological advancement in the modern age," Loki said. "Can anyone guess what it is?"

"A USB port?" Rocket said, and several of the others laughed.

"Almost precisely, and yet… so very far off," Loki said. She held the device against her neck and prongs fastened themselves to her. Then she took a Soul Chip from the initial drawer.

"You have _more_ of those?" Bruce said. "Jesus, Loki, how many slices of our souls did you take?"

"The soul is infinite. You can take as many pieces as you want, and be left with no less than you started with," Wong said.

"Exactly, Master Wong, thank you," Loki said. "Besides, this particular soul is not one of your own. This one belonged to a young lady named Peggy Hays, a lounge singer and dance hall girl from your 1930s. She didn't know she was a mutant, but she had the underdeveloped power to entrance with her voice and body motions."

"And…?" Tony said.

"And." Loki put the Soul Chip into the port on her neck and pressed it in. In a matter of seconds, she _changed._

It was still recognizably Loki, but instead of her black man's suit and cloak with green trim, she now wore a black sequined formal gown with a green rose corsage. Her long, greasy hair was done up in an old fashioned bun. She was dancing, swaying slowly, seductively back and forth. It was almost impossible to look away.

"Wh-wh-wh… what is the purpose of this?" Tony said, shaking himself free with difficulty.

"Well, it might make a decent distraction," Loki said, taking out the Soul Chip and changing back. "While the Soul Chip is engaged, you have access to the powers she had - and the _ability_ to learn the powers she never did. Who knows where you could take it."

"You're in command," Bruce said, nervously. "You're not out of control?"

"Ahh… to a certain extent. You choose what you do, but not necessarily how you do it. Who wants to try it?"

No one seemed eager to step forward, but finally Tony said, "Aw hell, I'll do it."

Loki gave him a port and a Soul Chip. Tony hesitated, then placed the port against his neck. _"Ouch._ Well, actually, I kind of thought it would hurt more."

"Yes, yes, now do be a dear and plug yourself in," Loki said.

He took the Soul Chip and with some fumbling socked it into a port. Instantly, he changed from his business suit into a long leather duster and fingerless gloves. There was a pack of cards in his hand. "What de fuck?" he said. "What am Ah s'posed to do wi'd dis?"

"This is the soul of a fellow named Remy LeBeau, a member, past or present, I'm uncertain which for the time being, of the X-Men. Another mutant. I didn't realize his Cajun accent would pass on to you, but I think if you exert yourself, your own voice will overcome. Mr. LeBeau's power involves biokinetic manipulation - he 'charges' inanimate objects so that they explode. He charges playing cards and tosses them at opponents. It's really quite effective, actually. However, his _major_ skill set is that he is a highly trained thief from one of the few remaining professional guilds. It could come in handy."

"We don't need thieves," Steve said staunchly.

"Captain," Loki said. "You can't think of a use for incredible stealth, balance, agility, and ability to work around security systems? Even if no theft is involved?"

"Is dis dangerous?" Tony said. "I don't feel lahk mahself, edzactly."

"Oh, _now_ you ask," Loki said. "The truth is, I don't know. But what is life without risk?"

" _Safe,"_ Bruce said.

" _Dull,"_ Loki countered.

"You have four ports," Tony said, taking out the Soul Chip. "What are the other two souls you have?"

"Warrior and Gunner," Loki said. "I thought that rounded out the action fairly well. The up-close heavy hitter and long-range destroyer. Captain America and Nicholas Fury."

The corners of Tony's mouth turned down. "You didn't use me?"

"Of course I did. Engineer."

"You just said you only had two more."

"Only two more here. Here you go. And here's Songstress."

"I could be a gunner. I have way bigger guns than Nick."

"And your engineering genius makes you a much better choice for an engineer. What is the _difference_ what you are _called?"_

"I just want to know why you don't have me."

"Because the Soul Chip isn't _here,_ all right? Geez! I scattered the rest of them throughout your world. It's a scavenger hunt."

"Say _what?_ Why?" Fury said.

"Well, where would be the fun in just handing them all over?" Loki said, grinning. "You each get one basic port, Songstress, Gunner, Warrior, and Thief. That will be more than enough to get you by. I've scattered more advanced ports throughout your world and all the rest of the Soul Chips as well. Happy hunting!"

"How do you stop some random citizen from getting hold of these things?" Peter Parker said.

"Relax. It's like the Sanctum Sanctorum. Nobody can see them who doesn't already know to look for them," Loki said. "You'll be the only ones who can see or interact with them."

"And they're just… all over the world?" Nebula said. "In random locations?"

"Not totally. I've hidden them in objects you might think to look into," Loki said, with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

"What does that mean?" Peter Parker said.

"Coffers. They look like this." She cast an illusion and an object appeared, an earthenware vase about a foot tall and six inches in diameter, with a lid. "You never know what might be inside. New ports, Soul Chips, gold, treasures… _enemies…"_

"Enemies?" Steve said, eyebrow raised.

"Smallish ones, for the purposes of training your Soul Chip talents, of course," Loki said. "I've collected them from various worlds. There's nothing that you would have any difficulty taking care of normally, but opening a coffer expecting treasure and having a displacer beast jump out at you might prove a surprise."

"What kind of treasure?" Tony said.

"Mostly magical things. You people don't know how to accessorize. Even you, Strange - nothing more than a cloak and a sling ring? Honestly. Any true sorcerer should have at least a _rune bracer,_ for goodness sake."

"A what?" Stephen said.

"Exactly my point."

"Well… _we're_ not sorcerers," Tony said. "Most of us. What good would magical equipment do for us?"

"Honestly, you people are dense. Magical equipment works for anyone. If I gave you a Spark Ring, Mr. Stark, you might have no knowledge of the casting of magic, yourself, but through the magic of the ring you would be able to call upon the forces of lightning. If you wore the Doctor's cloak of levitation, _you would fly,_ no boosters necessary - although that garment is picky about who it works with."

"If that's true, why didn't Thor just use a Spark Ring to call the lightning when Mjolnir was destroyed?" Mantis asked.

"Because Mjolnir was _stronger_ than a Spark Ring," Loki said, cutting off Thor before he could answer for himself. "Spark Rings are _basic_ equipment. Mjolnir was… _master-level._ And Thor doesn't _need_ a Spark Ring. He doesn't _really_ even need Stormbringer. The power is _in_ him. He was born to it, and he grows stronger with every trial. But even he could use a little _accessorizing."_

"I wear a _rune bracer,_ brother," Thor said, the blush of embarrassment from his brother's praise fading at his indignation at the last sentence.

" _Every_ Asgardian wears a _rune bracer,_ brother," Loki said, wrinkling her nose. "It's almost as essential as a codpiece. You could stand a little more."

"You know, I'm not so sure this is the best of ideas," Stephen said. "Mixing souls, I mean. I could see that going heinously wrong."

"Oh, come, Doctor. What's the worst that could happen?" Loki said.

"Permanent personality changes. Identity loss," Stephen said.

"Yes, but the downside?" Loki said.

"I'm _serious,"_ Stephen said.

"Oh, don't be such a stick in the mud, Strange," Loki said. "I've done decades of testing. The worst that can happen is that you'll tap into the emotions of the person whose soul you're touching, and _that,_ my friends, is called _empathy._ It happens _every_ time two souls touch, which _should_ hopefully happen a _lot."_

"How often does it happen to _you?"_ Fury asked casually. Loki gave him a hurt look.

"I am _not_ without empathy," was all she said.

* * *

"Thor."

"Doctor," Thor said, turning to greet the owner of the voice as everyone began filing back up the stairs.

Stephen Strange seemed to take a moment to consider his next words. Then he looked straight into Thor's eye with eyes almost as blue and just as unwavering. "I want to keep Loki on Earth for awhile. On Midgard."

"Why?" Thor said.

"For observation. She's… _he's_ not well, I think you can tell it. Bringing Steve and Heimdall and I back to life played hell on him. His powers are off, his strength is off. I think I can help him. With your permission, and with your help in _convincing_ him, I'd like to bring him to the Sanctum for rest and whatever treatment I can provide."

Thor's eye narrowed and he turned to look at the doctor more squarely. "This isn't about his health. You don't _trust_ him," he said.

Stephen sighed. "That, too."

" _I_ can keep my brother in line."

"And _I_ can look after his flagging health," Stephen said. "You don't want to lose him again, do you?"

Thor's eye widened. "No. No, I don't. All right, wizard, _you_ look after his health, but _I'm_ coming along."

"Do you think that's necessary?" Stephen said.

"If my brother _does_ betray again, you'll need me, wizard. If he doesn't… then I have lost time to make up for."

LINE BREAK HERE

"I have one further question about the Soul Chips," Tony said when they were all together again.

"Oh?" Loki said.

"Why do they change our clothes? Why not just our powers?"

"A fair question, one I've never quite determined a proper truth for. The best I can tell is, the soul fragment plus the device I've contained them in is more powerful than just the soul itself. It enables the memory of the soul to become physical."

"But we don't turn into that person. Just the clothes?"

"No, you _do_ turn into that person, to an extent. If you plug in the _Warrior_ Soul Chip, you will have the abilities - and immunities - of Steve Rogers. You'll still have your face, and your clothing, while being Captain America body armor… will _not_ look quite the same as his, no doubt. It's like… _his_ brand, _your_ style."

"Give us a demonstration," Steve said.

"Very well." Loki plugged in another Soul Chip to her own port. In a moment, she stood there in tight-fitting black and green body armor, carrying a black and green-circled shield, with golden horns on her head and as her shield insignia. "Not quite what you'd expect Steve Rogers to wear, correct? Really looks more Lokian."

"Okay, now I'm curious," Tony said, and plugged in his own Warrior Soul Chip. His Captain America outfit was red and yellow. "Wow. That's a rush. I feel this… overwhelming sense of righteousness."

" _Tony…"_ Steve said warningly.

"That wasn't an insult, Steve, I actually do. It's kind of cool."

"Remember what I said about experiencing the emotions of the person to whose soul you're connected," Loki said. "You are a righteous man, Steven. It isn't an insult when righteousness is applied appropriately."

"And _do_ I apply it appropriately?" Steve said, still clearly affronted.

"You're pretty damn good at it. And you always try," Tony said, not looking at Steve.

"Yes, yes, touchy-feely moment over, moving on," Loki said. "Any other questions, or can you people _leave,_ now?"

"How much use is it for someone like _you,_ say, to turn into Captain America?" Stephen asked. "I mean, you're a god, with amazing physical attributes and immunities already. Does this limit your access to your own powers?"

"Not at all. I can call on _all_ of my natural abilities while engaged in another Soul Chip. It's just a _joining,_ not an _overwhelming._ His physical abilities may or may not be of any real value to me, but his knowledge of war and how to fight it could well be. And you never know who you might have to ding upside the head with a shield. The greatest value of the Soul Chip system is that all the equipment of the Souls is ethereal. You don't have to carry it around with you between uses."

"You gave me the 'Warrior' Soul Chip," Steve said. "That's my own soul. So what good does that do me?"

"Well, you should notice no alteration, it is true," Loki said. "However, the power of the Chip should allow you to tap into talents you did not know you were capable of, over the course of time and training. This is theoretical, mind - I tested this theory on myself with an earlier version of the program, however the experiment as a whole was not a successful beta. The chips shorted out and the port exploded. Rather unpleasant, I can tell you. But I've got all the bugs out of it now."

"I _hope,"_ Steve said. "So what do I do? Just plug it in and hope for the best?"

"If you would, please. And everyone, when you come across your personal Soul Chips, whenever you're not using another Chip, just plug in your own and let the program run. It won't hurt you, and may prove beneficial, and it should eventually prove my theory."

"Brother, you must have saved this experiment from True Asgard before Ragnarok," Thor said. "Why was it so important to you?"

"It isn't obvious?" Loki said. "I've poured the better part of my life into this. In some ways, literally."

"Why?" Thor said. "What real purpose does it have to a god?"

"Well, if nothing else, the possibilities for creating chaos are nearly infinite," Loki said. "Use your sadly limited imagination, brother."

"If you did it to raise Cain, why did you make just enough ports for all of us?" Stephen said.

"Strange quirk of luck," Loki said, fiddling with a random knickknack. "I made the good ones by the scores, but these _basic_ ones… I didn't see any _reason_ to make more than what I had on hand here."

"And what was your reason for making the good ones in large numbers?" Stephen said.

"Oh… I can always find minions," Loki said with a toss of her greasy hair.

"I think you're lying, God of Deceit," Stephen said, blue eyes fixed on Loki, who wasn't looking at him. "I don't think you have any more of the 'good ones' than you had of these. I think you made them all specifically for us. Maybe you didn't _start_ the program with that end in mind… but that's where it's come to."

"Yeah, well… don't get full of yourselves," Loki said, with an expression that was best described as both a sneer and a snarl at the same time.

"That makes… everything you put me through… seem awfully complicated, brother," Thor said. "I think I deserve an explanation."

"Yeah, well, take a number."

" _Loki."_

"Not every plan works out. Not every feeling is real. Not every action is mine," Loki said, turning away petulantly.

"What does _that_ mean?" Thor said.

"You should know. When I said I hated you… it was the truth… and a lie."

"Loki, I don't understand you at all," Thor said.

"I don't understand me, either," Loki said. "Finally, we're on even ground."

"You tried to kill me," Thor said. "Was that a lie?"

"It was honest. But I didn't really want you… dead."

Thor ran his hands through his hair. "What are you playing at, brother? You wanted to kill me, but you didn't want me dead? What does this even _mean?_ Wait - this wasn't… part of this _experiment?_ Kill me and bring me back to life with one of your Soul Chips? Just to see if it would _work?"_

Loki shook his head. "Give me some credit, brother. My magic gives me the power of precognition. I always knew… I wasn't strong enough."

" _Why fight if you know you're going to fail? Why cause so much pain and destruction if there is no gain to it?"_ Thor shouted.

Loki merely looked at him with sad green eyes for a long, drawn-out moment, then looked away. Finally she said, "If I could explain why I did it, then perhaps I wouldn't hate myself for it."


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Marvel Comics trademarks or any of its related characters. This is just for my own enjoyment and the potential enjoyment of other comic junkies like me, and no monetary gain was expected or received.

 **Rating:** T+

 **Chapter Three: Sanctum**

When Thor informed his brother, in tones of no uncertainty, that they were moving into the Sanctum with Doctor Strange for the foreseeable future, Loki, predictably, pitched a royal fit.

"I'm _fine,_ brother. I don't need to be nursemaided. Least of all by an amateur sorcerer from a lesser realm," she said. "If he thinks I need his precious _medical care,_ he can make bloody house calls. We're only as far away as _Norway,_ after all."

"It's not that simple, brother," Thor said, putting him in a headlock. "Now come along and be a good boy, _capisce?"_

"Are you trying to sound like a human? You're doing badly. The proper use of the term in this instance is _'capito,'_ you cyclopean ignoramus," Loki said in a choked voice as she tried to pull her brother's arm off her throat. "You hang out with too many Americans."

"Just… come along, Loki," Thor said, and raised Stormbringer. A flash of lightning, and they were gone.

They reappeared on Bleeker Street, in front of the hidden Sanctum. Thor released his chokehold and Loki stepped away from him, smoothing her coat and wrinkling her lip at the gothic edifice. "What an ugly, ugly dwelling," she said. "You'd think it'd have some style."

"It's better on the inside," Thor said.

"It would almost have to be," Loki said. "On the outside it's one scant step up from a soggy cardboard box."

Thor kicked her. The front door opened. Wong stepped out. "Get in here," he said. He sounded cross. The brothers entered, Thor leading Loki on with a hand on the back of her neck. Whatever the building appeared to be on the outside, the inside was stately and elegant in an old-fashioned manner. It clearly didn't meet Loki's high standards.

"Wood paneling. So gauche," she said, sneering. "It's darker than a coal miner's lungs in here."

"Human decorative preferences aren't Asgardian decorative preferences," Thor said. "It's very nice in here."

"If you like _funeral parlors._ Where's the casket? Who's the guest of honor?"

"That would be you, Loki, and you'll be in a casket directly if you don't settle down," Doctor Strange's voice came floating down over the banisters to them from somewhere on the floor above.

"Oh, stuff and nonsense, I am perfectly healthy," Loki growled.

"That's why you can't maintain a white god's flesh tone right now, I suppose? Or is the blue face a choice you're making?" Stephen asked, coming down the curved stairs towards them. "Not that you shouldn't be your true self, mind, but you _haven't_ heretofore, so I am curious."

"It has never been _natural_ for me to appear in blue face, thank you very much, before you go making insinuations on me hiding 'my true self,'" Loki said. "I don't know how, or why, but _'white god'_ is my natural form. Odin perhaps had something to do with that. I _didn't."_

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say you were ashamed of your race."

"Well, then don't _speak_ like you're saying it. The truth of the matter is… I barely know anything about frost giants. I don't feel much for them one way or the other. They have a brutal history, what I've seen of it. Just like Asgardians. They're simply less successful."

"They're your people," Stephen said.

"No, they're not," Loki said. "My 'father' was ashamed to claim me because I was small. If I had lived among them that would have been my entire life: height shaming. Asgardians don't pick on me for _that,_ at least."

"We don't pick on you at all," Thor said.

"Oh?" Loki said, and suddenly there were nine of her, squared off in groups of three, dancing in circles. _"All around the mulberry bush, the monkey chased the Loki… the monkey thought 'twas all in fun… POP goes the Loki!"_

"Childhood shenanigans, brother. 'Twas all meaningless," Thor said.

The Lokis changed directions and kept dancing. _"Loki's britches falling down, falling down, falling down! Loki's britches falling down, my fair lady!"_

Thor repressed a chortle. "Aw'right, yeah, pulling your drawers down was mean-spirited, I grant you…"

"When I was an adolescent. In front of Lady Alyndra. Whom you _knew_ I thought was quite attractive," Loki said, ceasing her dance and reforming into one. "That was worse than mean-spirited childhood shenanigans, brother."

"I was trying to help you! It's not my fault she didn't take an interest!" Thor said.

"Why would she take an interest in a boy being publicly humiliated by his elder sibling? I can do very well without your idea of help, thank you! It's all moot anyway, she prefers women to men in most cases."

"Seeing your pitiful equipment probably made her that way. Maybe she'd go for you now," Thor said.

"Why you -"

"Boys, boys!" Stephen said, putting himself between the gods, "let's not devolve. Loki, on the ship, you called yourself an Odinson again. There's a reason for that, right? And that reason is that _Thor is your true brother,_ right?"

Loki looked away, scowling, but slowly nodded. "Thor," Stephen said, "the last words you said to Loki before he died were that he was the worst. I bet you wish you could change that, don't you?" Thor's eye widened, and he nodded, too. "Come on. You're immortals, you've got a lot of past history, but it's _past._ Examine it later, but put it behind you for right now. Just… forgive? And move on."

Loki didn't look entirely prepared, but Thor swept her up in a huge, bonecrushing hug. "I'm sorry, brother. For _every_ ill I've done you, I'm sorry."

"Get off me, you lugubrious armadillo."

Stephen stared hard at Loki, though with no real expression on his face. "Wong, could you please show Thor to his rooms? I'd like a chance to speak to Loki alone."

"Sure, sure. I'll shine your shoes and polish your tea service, too, while I'm at it," Wong said, but he showed Thor down the halls and out of sight.

"Your manservant is angry with you," Loki said.

"He's not my manservant, he's my friend," Stephen said. "And… yes, he is still peeved because of the possession. It's a highly uncomfortable experience. Which is why I still hold strong reservations regarding your experiment with the Avengers."

"The containment chip doesn't allow full possession of a souled vessel," Loki said in exasperation. "It's a touch, nothing more."

Stephen held up his hands. "All right. But that's not really what I want to talk to you about. Please, step into the parlor with me."

"'Come step into my parlor, said the spider to the fly…'" Loki said, but followed him inside. "What do you want?"

"Please, sit," Stephen said, gesturing to a chair.

"And if I do not?" Loki said.

"It's up to you, but you'll be more comfortable seated," Stephen said. "I just wanted to talk to you for a moment about… Thor. He teased you, as a child. I know how bad that can feel. Still, I don't see that as a reason to want to _kill_ him. Is there anything you haven't said?"

"We teased each other," Loki sighed, falling so heavily into a wingback armchair that the legs cracked. "I gave as good as I got, within the limitations I was granted."

"So what, then?"

"I was only _allowed_ so much latitude. Whereas _Thor_ was given free rein. Can you even begin to imagine what's it's like to live every day when your older brother's favorite game is _'How High Can Loki Fly?'_ Pretty damned high, at times, until I learned how to levitate and counterbalance the momentum."

"How High Can Loki Fly…?" Stephen asked.

"When he struck me with a lightning bolt," Loki said.

"I can hardly imagine that of Thor," Stephen said. "He's always seemed so… nice."

"He _is_ nice," Loki said. "That's the blackest part of the whole thing. It's only with me that he was ever like that, and that's because he was _taught_ to be that way with me. By our father. And the worst of it was, I never even questioned that it should be so. Because father taught me _my_ place so very well."

"I can see why you'd be conflicted," Stephen said. "You do know your brother loves you, right?"

"I do. He even stopped treating me like shit, somewhere along the way. And for some reason… that just made me hate him more. He got all the good attention, all the praise and glory, and… when he would hurt me, it would make me think he was an asshole… but when he started to be good to me… it just showed me that he _deserved_ all the praise… and I probably really was as low as they always made me feel."

"Your father abused you," Stephen said. "Worse. He got your brother to do it for him. I'm sure Thor realizes it now. It probably hurts him to know that almost as much as the fact of it hurt you. And I'd bet it confuses him. The father who loved him, whom he loved so dearly… who said he loved you, too… being so vicious."

"What do you care?" Loki said.

"Firstly, Thor… and yourself… are gods, with unprecedented power. I am what amounts to this realm's Sorcerer Supreme for the time being, and since you're living in this realm now, that brings you under my jurisdiction. To keep the peace, I need to keep the two of you from each other's throats. Thor doesn't want to fight you, but you remain a wild card."

"I don't want to fight my brother any longer," Loki said quietly.

"But you're still angry with him, and that anger could rise up unexpectedly and you could lash out," Stephen said. "I can't let that happen, Loki. Not in an uncontrolled environment. You're too dangerous."

"So am I to be bound and gagged again?" Loki demanded.

"No. But I might suggest a course of family therapy."

Loki was aghast. "You - you're going to _analyze_ me?"

Stephen shook his head. "I'm a neurologist, not a psychologist. I wouldn't know how to handle it. But _someone_ must have survived the Snap who can help."

"You want my brother and I to air our dirty laundry… talk about our _feelings_ … before a _stranger?"_

"Or you could just talk to each other for once and for all. Here at the Sanctum, where it's reasonably safe. Tell Thor what you need him to hear. How you really feel, and why. Give him a chance to say what he needs to say."

Loki's mouth opened and closed several times, like a landed fish gasping for water. "What an insufferable bunch of pansy-assedness!" he declared at last.

"It's that, or bound and gagged. I don't want to do it, but you have to understand, you have shown yourself to be more powerful than Thor claimed you were. More powerful than I gathered you were when you tried to take over New York. You're probably far more powerful than I am, and you're a tricky sonofabitch. For the sake of world peace, I would have no choice."

Loki settled back in her chair and stared hard at Stephen for a long moment. "And you would trust this 'tricky sonofabitch' if I did… _talk_ … with Thor?"

"…To an extent. Not to the extent that I would let you out of my sight, but to an extent."

"Do you think my _brother_ would approve of you keeping me locked away here?"

"He doesn't trust you, either, Loki. A mistrust you brought upon yourself."

"Not entirely," Loki grumbled.

"I beg your pardon?" Stephen said.

"I said not entirely," Loki said more clearly. "Odin branded me 'God of Mischief and Deceit' before I assayed my first words. Even when I told the truth, everyone believed I was lying."

"Well, I believe you," Stephen said. "You're telling the truth."

"And how do you know?" Loki said.

Stephen brought out a shining orb from the desk drawer in front of him. "Do you know what this is?"

"No clue. But I'd bet you're going to tell me."

"This the Orb of Agamatto. It… discerns truth. And leads you to it. Supposedly, even a god of lies and trickery can't foil it. And it's been telling me that what you're saying is true."

"Ah. A few tricks of your own, I see."

"I was a Boy Scout, once upon a time. Our motto is, 'Be Prepared.'"

"So what do you intend to do about it?" Loki asked. "This… truth? True or false, I've done enough evil to deserve all the opprobrium that is heaped upon me. That was my choice, I made it freely."

"Not entirely."

"Hmm?"

"You were influenced, weren't you, when you tried to conquer New York. Thanos."

"You know about that."

"I don't know how he got to you, or what he did, but yes, I know he held sway over you. To some extent."

Loki stood up and paced. "I didn't want to do it. I've done a lot of really bad things that I really wanted to do, but not that."

"I believe you."

"I'm not _real big_ into the slaughter of innocents thing," Loki said, running her hands through her hair. "I just mostly want attention."

"I believe you."

"I never would have executed a plan so wantonly destructive as to -"

"Loki - _I believe you."_

Loki stopped, looked at Stephen, and collapsed back into the broken chair. The backrest broke halfway off from the seat. "Thank you."

A pudgy basset hound waddled in and sat down between them and scratched its ear with a hindleg. "What's all the hubbub, Doc?" it asked. "Who's the lady? New girlfriend?"

"You have a talking dog," Loki said.

"Not exactly. He doesn't 'talk,' you're just understanding Dog. I put a translation spell on him," Stephen said, clearly embarrassed. "Since the Snap, there's a lot of ownerless animals wandering the city. Bats happened by one day and he and I kind of hit it off."

Loki's green eyes turned into hundred karat emeralds as they widened in comic surprise. _"Bats?"_

"He does not speak on his past much - I gather that it's painful to him - but I believe he may have associated with a young person. A child, perhaps. That may account for the name."

"He doesn't seem at all surprised that you're you. Doesn't he only know you as Wong?" Loki said.

"This is true. Bats, how do you know who I am?" Stephen asked.

"I'm not stupid, I can tell people apart by more than just their smell," the dog said. "Funny how new you smell, though. Not just a _different_ person, but a _new_ person. _Brand_ -new, new born. That's weird."

"Loki here is responsible for that. He saved my life, and the lives of my friends. He gave me back a proper body for my soul to inhabit."

"Ah, Doc… that's a woman. Even a dog knows a woman when he smells one," the dog said.

"It's complicated, Bats."

"Why does she smell like the inside of a dead snake?" Bats asked.

"Ah. Yes. I… neglected to bathe…" Loki said. It was clearly her turn to be embarrassed. "I didn't think it was noticeable."

"I'm a dog, toots," Bats said. "A scent hound."

Loki started up from the chair. "And I am Loki, son of Odin, Prince of Asgard, rightful King of Jotunheim, and you will not address me as _'toots.'"_

"Okay, okay, sheesh. Sorry. I'm just a dog, no need to get all hot under the collar. Get it? Dog?  
 _Collar?"_

"That is a _horrible_ joke," Loki said, settling back. "Who writes your material? Albert Barks?"

"Oo, good one. Yours must be written by George _Burns."_

"You can't light me, doggy, I'm asbestos," Loki said, and lit a flame on her hand with a spell that burned out in short order, leaving her fingers unsinged.

"Cool! You're a wizard, too?" Bats said, falling back on his haunches. "You know, you two should get together. You'd make a good couple."

Loki threw back her head and laughed. Stephen tugged at his collar. "Bats, I left some stew meat in the kitchen for you, if you're hungry…"

"I was just in the kitchen. There wasn't anything there," Bats said.

"It's there now."

"Oh, I get it. Third wheel. I'm going, I'm going." And the dog padded out of the room. Loki watched him go, then looked at Stephen's beet red face and burst out laughing again.

* * *

"Would you consider talking to me?" Stephen asked, rather suddenly.

"I thought you said you knew nothing about psychology?" Loki said.

"I don't. But as a friend. You could, I think, use a friend."

"I don't know you, Magician."

"It would be easy enough to _get_ to know me, but even though you're immortal, I confess I don't feel we have much time. If your invention works the way you think it does, Thanos may be on his way. I need everyone at full capacity, and that means you, too. So, let's take a shortcut, shall we?" Stephen made a gesture with his arms and his astral self came forth from his body and entered Loki.

"Hey!" Loki cried out, but it was too late, she was treated to a full crash course of Stephen Strange, his childhood in Nebraska, growing up in a sea of cornfields, his growing adolescent desire to get out and see more of the world than corn, corn, corn, corn, corn. His desire to save lives, and how that longing was eventually overshadowed by his ego and avarice.

"Hm. You're kind of a jerk," Loki said, when Stephen returned to himself.

"Some would say we have that in common," Stephen said.

"I didn't say I didn't like it."

"I'm trying to change this facet of myself."

"So am I, to some extent."

"Good. We can work together."

"Who says I want to work with you?"

"Loki…"

"All right, all right. For _now,_ I will… be your pet project. But don't think I do this for you. It's for that dumb blond I keep trying to kill. If I can get over that feeling, I'll consider it worthwhile."

"That… is what we call growth."

"Are we done? Because I would like to sluice off so I no longer offend your hound."

"I will show you to your room."

"I hope they're less austere than the rest of the house."

"There is nothing austere about the Sanctum," Stephen said.

"It might as well be a prison."

"Oh right, Your Highness. I forgot you were used to solid gold staircases and diamond bedposts."

"Actually, when I lived in Odinhall I slept in the stables. They were still classier than this."

Stephen paused, and chose to let pass what he was going to say. He knew any sympathy he showed would not be well-received at this time. He led Loki through the halls of the Sanctum to a room not far from his own or from the room he'd given to Thor. He wondered a bit at the wisdom in that.

"Here you go. You have your own bath. Dinner is at eight. Otherwise, for now, you're on your own as far as what you want to do with yourself."

"Thank you, Daddy," Loki said.

"Wash. Your hair," Stephen said, and vanished.

Loki turned and entered the room. It was a very nice room, really, traditional Chinese in style from a range of historical periods. And there was a very large bed that looked quite comfortable. Loki took herself to the attached bathroom and filled the clawfoot tub.

It was the first time since her birth that she was naked, and she took the opportunity to look herself over. Not bad, really. A little on the muscular side, perhaps, but maybe that was to be expected - at other times when she'd changed from male to female, she'd always retained some muscularity. At least she'd always been lean, even as a male. Nothing in particular against the look, but she wouldn't want to be the Jennifer Walters type, all beefy and… green. Not that she didn't like green, just not that much.

It was hilarious, really, how confused everyone was. She could tell, even when they weren't saying anything. They didn't know how to deal with her femininity, so they were ignoring it. She'd always been as much female as male, as comfortable in one body as she was in another. Her base form had simply been male, and Odin, of course, had wanted sons. Now her base form was female. It really changed nothing. Once she was strong and this fatigue no longer gripped her, she would have all the same powers she had always had, and would be male or female again at will. Thor seemed to understand.

Which actually pissed her off a bit.

She ducked her head under the water and came up again. This, _this_ was what needed to change. Blaming Thor, _hating_ Thor, for being a _good_ brother. Blaming Thor for the way she was treated as a child. Blaming Thor for getting all the good attention. Blaming Thor for Odin. Hell, maybe it was time to stop blaming _Odin_ for Odin.

 _Your father abused you._ Stephen's words came back to her so clearly that she wasn't sure he wasn't speaking to her telepathically. Thor's game, "How High Can Loki Fly?" wasn't even his own invention. Odin gave it to him. Odin put it in his head to hurt his brother and told him it was just a game. Play. Fun for both of them.

Definitely time to stop blaming Thor.

But how do you let go of that many mortal lifetimes of resentment? Just… let go? Could it be as simple as breathing out?

She gathered all her feelings, drew a deep breath, and let it out slowly. She felt lighter somehow, and for a moment she was almost convinced it worked. Then she felt her feelings settle back down on top of her, heavy as ever. She was twelve hundred and fifty-eight, but those were Asgardian years, and Asgard - _True_ Asgard - operated on a different timescale from Midgard. She had lived with this weight of feeling for more than fifteen million Earth Standard years. Sometimes she just wanted to die and have done with it all. Die for real and finally. But what good really would that do? She would only find herself in Hel or Valhalla, with all eternity ahead of her. All she wanted was oblivion. Mortals did not understand how lucky they were to live brief spans.

She went to bed. At some point during the night, a ghost paid her a visit. Stephen, floating above her in astral form. Did he think himself stealthy? She watched him closely through her dark eyelashes.

He appeared deeply consternated. About what, she honestly had no clue. Then he reached out one ghostly hand and brushed at a strand of damp hair that rested on Loki's cheek.

"I'm sorry for what happened to you in your youth," he said in a quiet voice, pitched almost too low to hear. "I wish I could do something to help you." Then he vanished.

Curiouser and curiouser. Was this merely a healer's empathy? They really didn't know each other at all, their brief one-time meeting before the Snap hadn't been particularly auspicious and had lasted perhaps twenty seconds. Strange _knew_ she was originally male, had seen her that way, but perhaps he hadn't really internalized it. Perhaps he'd taken an interest? A pretty girl with a sad story. It had happened before.

Loki didn't have Heimdall's ability to see all the universe at once, but she was quite an accomplished sorcerer, and that gave her abilities every bit as impressive. She knew things about people they didn't necessarily know she knew. Strange kept his dossier on her? Well, she had a dossier on Strange, and she knew he was a nerd but still a bit of a playboy. It might be fun to play with him for awhile. She snuggled into the thick comforter and fell asleep to sweet dreams of seduction and deceit.


End file.
